Jensen Huang, an architect of the AI boom, resigns as Nvidia CEO
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Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. Photo: Soeren Stache/picture alliance via Getty Images
Jensen Huang resigned as CEO of Nvidia after he reportedly had two affairs, including one with a purported Chinese spy.
Why it matters: It's impossible to overstate how critical Huang is to Nvidia, to the AI buildout, to the stock market and economy.
- His departure could, per Wall Street sources, be the catalyst that endangers a ballooning AI bubble.
Driving the news: Nvidia's board named longtime CFO Colette Kress interim CEO, while launching a search for a permanent replacement.
- Kress, who joined Nvidia in 2013, will continue serving as CFO while overseeing the company.
- Harvey C. Jones was appointed Nvidia's first-ever board chair.
- The board said it expects Nvidia's operations, customer commitments and product roadmap to continue without interruption.
Zoom out: Huang's resignation follows revelations about two extramarital relationships.
- The New York Times reported Wednesday that Huang had a relationship with Kimberly Powell, a senior Nvidia executive who reports to him.
- Nvidia's board had previously launched an independent investigation into Huang's relationship with Alice Huang, a Chinese businesswoman identified by U.S. intelligence as a Chinese intelligence asset.
- Nvidia did not provide a reason for Huang's resignation in Thursday's announcement, which comes after reports that the board had an emergency meeting over whether to oust the CEO.
By the numbers: Nvidia shares fell more than 10% after news of Huang's resignation.
- One of Wall Street's most prominent voices on tech, analyst Dan Ives, said Nvidia was worth 25% less without Huang.
🚨 Stunning stat: At these levels, Nvidia will have lost about $1.4 trillion in market capitalization in two weeks, since the initial Times report about linking Jensen Huang and Alice Huang.
The big picture: This will likely go down as one of the biggest executive scandals in history.
- Nvidia is also one of the largest holdings in major index funds because of its size, meaning this move has massive implications for every American with a retirement account.
The bottom line: The fallout is just starting.
This is breaking news.
